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Silverwing Society
As long as there have been gryphons, there have been Silvers. The Silverwing society, like the gryphons who mostly populate it, was formed by The Magistrate for one primary purpose: to act as protection against the many threats in the sky. Sky pirates, Fish... and especially Mist... these are the dangers which threaten to wipe out the citizens of Tier every day, and against which our proud and noble Silvers risk their lives day after day in the interest of defending the innocent. Silverwing gryphons are easiest recognized by the silver blades clipped to the first three primaries of each wing: hence, silverwing. These blades do double duty in battle as both a powerful weapon and armor to protect the feathers most necessary for controlled flight. ''Beliefs'' From the time they break shell, many young gryphons find themselves in awe of the Silvers: in flight, a perfect V formation, their feathers rippling in the wind, their silhouettes lined in the gold of the sun... a symbol of peace and protection to the people of Tier. To the average citizen, they are a comforting beacon. To the wide-eyed young fledgling, they are heroes. And for the fledglings who hope to one day become a Silver themselves, their life becomes a journey to attain the high standards of chivalry for which the Silvers stand. The Silverwing way of life, however, has more depth than first meets the eye. Though they fight hard and bravely against potential threats, there is more to them than a mindless police force. On or off the field of battle, the Silverwings follow a strict code of honor which is not written down in any rule book. It's more of a list of values, as part of a way of life. Their values include: ''Organization'' At the figurative head of the Silverwing Society is The Magistrate. The Magistrate was responsible for founding the organization and, because all of its members exist on their payroll, still hold command over them, when they so please. However, except in dire circumstances, the Silvers are left to manage their own operations. Within each and every wing, a natural - forgive the pun - pecking order is established. The following positions are available in every wing, and relate to physical positions in a flying formation. : » Commander : The Commander does not have to be a gryphon. Commanders, just as their names imply, act as the tactical heads of operation to each of their respective wings. They call the shots on all major missions. However, Commanders never see the place of battle. They remain on the island, communicating with the gryphons under their command via radio. There is only one Commander to each wing.In a time of war or of great need, Commanders hold regular meetings or war councils with one another and act as commanding generals of an army. : » General : The general, again, does not necessarily have to be a gryphon. He or she does, however, have to have an impeccable understanding of a gryphon's anatomy. It is the general's job to take in and train promising youngsters in the arts of flying, fighting, and magic wielding. In addition, they are tasked with keeping the current wing in fit flying and fighting shape with regular training flights and exercises. A wing may have one or two generals to a wing, depending on need. : » Wingleader : The wingleader of each wing is the most powerful flyer and fighter in the wing. In flying formation, the wingleader always flies at the head of the V, taking the brunt of the wind. When in battle, the wingleader communicates via headset with the commander and relays his or her commands to the rest of the wing. Many wingleaders hold celebrity status with the people of Tier, and especially with the young fledglings. : » Wingsecond : The wingsecond is the second in command in each wing and flies at the wingleader's right hand side. In any instance where the wingleader is unaccessable or unable to speak, the wingsecond takes charge of the wing. If at any time the wingleader were to die or become seriously injured, the position of wingleader would be passed to the wingsecond by default.Competitions are regularly held between the wingleader and wingsecond of each wing, to decide if the wingleader should keep his title, or if the wingsecond should be promoted. These competitions are enormously popular: they always draw huge, cheering crowds. It's somewhat of a sporting event with the people of Tier. : » Combatants : The combatants (also known as pereci) are the general fighters of each wing. Usually, a wing has up to 7 combatants. The strongest of the combatants takes the position to the wingleader's left, and is sometimes allowed to compete in the contests for the wingleader position. : » Helots : The helots are those gryphons in each wing who wield magic. The average wing contains 2 -3 helots, though of course there are exceptions. Some wings have no helots, whereas others will only accept a gryphon if he or she can wield magic. A gryphon holding the rank of spartiate, hamoi, or pereci can double as a helot, and in many cases do. ''Wings'' : » The Raptor Wing : This wing is an elitist group of fighters which takes part in special ops missions for The Authority, be it raiding a passing town or slaying a large onset of pirates. The legality of some of these missions is questionable at best, so needless to say, their operations are kept confidential.Raptors are best known for their haunting appearances. Forsaking the silver of their companions, the Raptors dawn protective gear dyed bone white. Over the barrel, this gear protrudes out in the shape of a rib cage. Down the spine, it appears to be just that: a spine, in which each bone supports a long spike. And over the head, they wear a mask in the shape of a skull, with two pointed protrusions like horns to cover the gryphon's ear tufts. : » Archwing : The Archwing is the first line of defense. They accept only the biggest and the baddest, the best of their generation. Though the gryphons of Archwing fly regular duty just like any other, unremarkable wing, the Archwing is often called for extra duty in assisting whichever wing is on schedule when a Fish or large band of pirates strikes, or to fly as a show of power when another city or town is in the area.For recognition purposes, the Archwing gryphons paint the tips of their primaries and secondaries gold. : » Runewing : Runewing is a group of gryphons gathered for the sole purpose of fighting the one danger which threatens 24 hours a day: Mist. Runewing gryphons specialize in air and wind magics, and are charged with the task of keeping Mist away from the island so it cannot harm the people or decay the city.Runewing wears specialized protective gear which covers the nostrils and filters air to be breathable; more or less a gas mask for gryphons. The tips of their primaries and secondaries are dyed purple. : » Tertian Wing : There is nothing terribly special or different about Tertian Wing. They fly regular patrols and occasionally find themselves engaged in combat. Tertian is mostly made up of young gryphons or gryphons deemed otherwise nearly useless.Tertian Wing dyes the tips of their primaries and secondaries green. ''Initiation'' Gryphons begin their training in general schools when they are still fledglings, and train until the day they are deemed ready to be placed into a wing of their very own. In most cases, this happens when the gryphon is approximately two years of age - the gryphon age of adulthood... though in some cases, they may be taken early or late if they show high skill, or the lack of. Once a year, an initiation ceremony is held for each of the new fledglings that has been deemed ready and granted a place in the Silverwing Society. During the ceremony, each of the new recruits discovers for the first time which wing he or she has been accepted into, when the Wingleader of that wing steps forward and offers the gryphon a set of wingblades. It is considered an enormous honor to be recruited to one of the higher wings. Gryphon parents tend to do a lot of crying at the ceremony. Now, don't get the impression that every young gryphon is automatically accepted to the Silvers. Only those who are fit to fight and to fly will be admitted. Gryphons with birth defects, injuries, stunted growth, or conditions such as blindness or deafness which will hinder their ability on the field of battle must be turned away, for their own safety and the safety of their wingmates.